New York, NY (Top40 Charts) On the heels of his popular debut album, "Snowbird," Toronto artist Cantek Batur is releasing his second debut solo album, "Ghost Stories," which will be available October 28, on iTunes, Apple Music, You Tube, Spotify and all major streaming and listening outlets.
"
Ghost Stories" features 7 tracks written from Batur's personal stories, and mostly comprised of lyrics from stories written years ago that eventually evolved into a song. "These are stories that were never talked about, never revealed, and have never seen the sunlight," explains Batur. "That's what makes them ghost stories."
The 7 tracks include:
1. Vain
2. Play Dead
3. Can I Tell All My
Friends That I Kissed You
4. Stranger Girl
5. Blue Heart
6. Mundane World
7. Torn
While "
Ghost Stories" brings some familiar sounds from Batur's previous work, the new compilation is fresh and unique, exploring several new directions. "My style is really what moves me at the time," Batur explains. "I listen to and am influenced by all genres, but when it comes to producing my own work, I've always been conservative. That's because I find industrial music very formulated and limiting,"
"There are a few areas where I'm breaking out of my shell in this album," Batur continues. "Vain is one of them. It's one of the first demos that came out and it changed a lot through the course of recording, and I was never able to add the kind of energy that I wanted to the song, until I decided to include a rapper and turn it into a hip-hop song," he says. "This isn't something that I thought I would ever do. It's a song of frustration, disappointment and getting a kick out of somebody's failure. That subject can open up a lot of different energies. And it works."
"Mundane World" is another song that went in a direction that Batur wasn't expecting. It was initially intended for a male singer. The song is about a dream, and
Marina Rechkalova from Greece wrote and sang her part in Latin. She was immediately the artist Batur chose to record for the album. "It's one of my favorite parts of producing. You never know what something will turn into until you're in the middle of it."
As with Batur's previous albums, on "Ghost Stories," the singer/songwriter collaborates with a variety of talented artists, many of whom are Toronto-based, with a few international contributors.
"Can I Tell All My
Friends That I Kissed You" was co-written by the talented Londin Thompson. The guitars on the song were recorded by
Daniel Uribe Colorado, from Columbia. Uribe Colorado, a two-time Latin Grammy winner, boasts credits including Ed Sheeran,
Camila Cabello, Alejandro Sanz, Justin Timberlake, Maluma,
Karol G, Ricky Martin, Camilo, Nodal, Vives)
Prior to his solo career, Batur sang in Turkish rock band Zift, which, in 2010, released a full Turkish album and in 2011, a maxi single. Batur released his first solo track, "Under Northern Skies," in 2019.
Batur is excited to combine old "stories" with some new style explorations and is confident his fans will appreciate the fresh angles. "To me, there's not much to invent in music anymore. So, since I don't fit into one solid genre, I continue to release what sounds good to me."
"
Ghost Stories" will be available October 28 on all streaming and download sites. The album will also be released in both vinyl and cassette formats, as memorabilia. For more information about the album and Cantek Batur visit www.batur.ca.
